2020–21 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team represented Wichita State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas and were led by interim head coach Isaac Brown who took over as interim coach after Gregg Marshall resigned before the start of the season. Brown was promoted to full-time head coach during the season. They are members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 16–6, 11–2 in AAC Play to finish in 1st place. They defeated South Florida in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament before losing in the semifinals to Cincinnati. They received an at large-bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the First Four to Drake.

2020–21 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball
AAC regular season champions
NCAA tournament, First Four
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Record	16–6 (11–2 AAC)
Head coach	Isaac Brown (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Tyson Waterman Lou Gudino Billy Kennedy
Home arena	Charles Koch Arena
Seasons ← 2019–20 2021–22 →

2020–21 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Wichita State	11	–	2		.846			16	–	6		.727
No. 6 Houston †	14	–	3		.824			28	–	4		.875
Memphis	11	–	4		.733			20	–	8		.714
SMU	7	–	4		.636			11	–	6		.647
Cincinnati	8	–	6		.571			12	–	11		.522
UCF	8	–	10		.444			11	–	12		.478
Tulsa	7	–	9		.438			11	–	12		.478
South Florida	4	–	10		.286			9	–	13		.409
Temple	4	–	10		.286			5	–	11		.313
Tulane	4	–	12		.250			10	–	13		.435
East Carolina	2	–	10		.167			8	–	11		.421
† 2021 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Shockers finished the 2019–20 season 23–8, 11–7 in AAC play and finished in fourth place. They entered as the No. 4 seed in the AAC tournament, which was ultimately cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason
Jamarius Burton	2	G	6'3"	200	Sophomore	Charlotte, North Carolina	Transferred to Texas Tech^[1]
DeAntoni Gordon	3	F	6'7"	210	Freshman	Mobile, Alabama	Transferred to Northwest Mississippi CC^[2]
Erik Stevenson	10	G	6'3"	198	Sophomore	Lacey, Washington	Transferred to Washington^[3]
Noah Fernandes	11	G	5'11"	172	Freshman	Mattapoisett, Massachusetts	Transferred to UMass^[4]
Jaime Echenique	21	C	6'11"	258	Senior	Barranquilla, Colombia	Graduated
Tate Busse	32	G	6'2"	185	Freshman	St. Francis, Kansas	Walk–on; transferred to MSU Denver^[5]
Asbjørn Midtgaard	33	C	7'0"	267	Junior	Helsingør, Denmark	Transferred to Grand Canyon^[6]
Grant Sherfield	52	G	6'2"	189	Freshman	Wichita, Kansas	Transferred to Nevada^[7]

Morris Udeze initially entered the transfer portal in March before deciding in late April to remain with the Shockers.^[8]

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Ricky Council IV G	Durham, North Carolina	Northern High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Mar 29, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: NR
Chaunce Jenkins G	Newport News, Virginia	Menchville High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Mar 29, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jaden Seymour F	Charlotte, North Carolina	Northside Christian Academy	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Apr 3, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

Incoming transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Alterique Gilbert	G	6'0"	180	Graduate Student	Atlanta, GA	Transferred from UConn after graduating. Will have one year of eligibility beginning immediately.^[9]
Craig Porter Jr.	G	6'1"	165	Junior	Terre Haute, IN	Junior college transferred from Vincennes University.^[10]
Clarence Jackson	F	6'6"	185	Sophomore	Dublin, GA	Junior college transferred from Polk State.^[11]
Trevin Wade	G	5'11"	166	Junior	Marietta, GA	Junior college transferred from Georgia Highlands.^[12] Brother of forward Trey Wade.
Remy Robert II	G	6'2"	183	Junior	Baton Rouge, LA	Walk–on; junior college transferred from State College of Florida.^[13]

Preseason

AAC preseason media poll

On October 28, The American released the preseason Poll and other preseason awards.^[14]

Coaches Poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Houston	99 (2)
2	Memphis	90 (2)
3	SMU	80
4	Cincinnati	77
5	South Florida	61
6	Tulsa	50
7	Wichita State	44
8	UCF	37
9	East Carolina	34
10	Temple	18
11	Tulane	15

Roster

2020–21 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Dexter Dennis 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Believe Academy Baker, Louisiana G 1 Tyson Etienne 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Putnam Science Academy Englewood, New Jersey G 2 Craig Porter Jr. 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Vincennes University Terre Haute, Indiana G 3 Alterique Gilbert 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) GS UConn Atlanta, Georgia G 4 Ricky Council IV 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Northern HS Durham, North Carolina F 5 Trey Wade 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 221 lb (100 kg) Sr South Plains CC Marietta, Georgia G 10 Remy Robert II (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Jr State College of Florida Baton Rouge, Louisiana G 11 Chaunce Jenkins 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Menchville HS Newport News, Virginia G 12 Trevin Wade 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Georgia Highlands Marietta, Georgia G 14 Jacob Herrs (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Andover HS Wichita, Kansas G 15 Brycen Bush (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 172 lb (78 kg) Sr Eisenhower HS Wichita, Kansas F 22 Jaden Seymour 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Northside Christian Academy Charlotte, North Carolina F 24 Morris Udeze 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Montverde Academy Houston, Texas F 25 Clarence Jackson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Polk State Dublin, Georgia F 40 Josaphat Bilau 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 232 lb (105 kg) RS Fr Spire Academy La Roche-sur-Yon, France F 44 Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Jr Sunrise Christian Academy Omaha, Nebraska	Head coach Isaac Brown (Louisiana–Monroe) Assistant coach(es) Tyson Waterman (Winthrop) Lou Gudino (Incarnate Word) Billy Kennedy (Southeastern Louisiana) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster Last update: August 20, 2020

Schedule and results

COVID-19 impact

Main article: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Shockers' schedule is subject to change, including the cancellation or postponement of individual games, the cancellation of the entire season, or games played either with minimal fans or without fans in attendance and just essential personnel.

• The Shockers were scheduled to participate in the 2020 Crossover Classic, but withdrew after multiple players tested positive for COVID-19.^[15]
• After the East Carolina game was postponed, December 30 was filled with a non-conference game vs. Newman.
• The game at East Carolina scheduled for February 21 was moved to Wichita.^[16]

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
December 2, 2020* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		Oral Roberts	W 85–80	1–0	26 – Etienne	8 – Jackson	3 – Tied	Charles Koch Arena (100) Wichita, KS
December 6, 2020* 1:00 p.m., ESPN2		Missouri	L 62–72	1–1	14 – Tied	7 – Tied	6 – Gilbert	Charles Koch Arena (100) Wichita, KS
December 12, 2020* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Oklahoma State	L 64–67	1–2	19 – Etienne	6 – Trey Wade	2 – Etienne	Charles Koch Arena (625) Wichita, KS
December 15, 2020 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Tulsa Rivalry	W 69–65	2–2 (1–0)	13 – Council IV	8 – Council IV	5 – Porter Jr.	Reynolds Center  Tulsa, OK
December 18, 2020* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		Emporia State	W 73–57	3–2	18 – Udeze	8 – Council IV	4 – Etienne	Charles Koch Arena (1,050) Wichita, KS
December 22, 2020 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		at South Florida	W 82–77 ^OT	4–2 (2–0)	25 – Etienne	8 – Trey Wade	5 – Gilbert	Yuengling Center (519) Tampa, FL
December 30, 2020 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		East Carolina	Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues^[17]					Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
December 30, 2020* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		Newman	W 81–43	5–2	13 – Dennis	8 – Jackson	5 – Etienne	Charles Koch Arena (1,575) Wichita, KS
January 2, 2021* 5:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Ole Miss American/SEC Alliance	W 83–79	6–2	29 – Etienne	10 – Trey Wade	5 – Trey Wade	The Pavilion at Ole Miss (860) Oxford, MS
January 6, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at No. 11 Houston	L 63–70	6–3 (2–1)	25 – Etienne	8 – Etienne	4 – Gilbert	Fertitta Center (1,859) Houston, TX
January 10, 2021 3:30 p.m., ESPN2		Cincinnati	W 82–76	7–3 (3–1)	23 – Council IV	6 – Council IV	3 – Tied	Charles Koch Arena (2,025) Wichita, KS
January 13, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tulsa Rivalry	W 72–53	8–3 (4–1)	20 – Tied	8 – Udeze	8 – Gilbert	Charles Koch Arena (2,048) Wichita, KS
January 21, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		at Memphis	L 52–72	8–4 (4–2)	13 – Council IV	7 – Council IV	4 – Gilbert	FedEx Forum (2,118) Memphis, TN
January 27, 2021 5:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Cincinnati	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues^[18]					Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
January 30, 2021 3:00 p.m., ESPNU		UCF	W 93–88 ^OT	9–4 (5–2)	29 – Etienne	8 – Jackson	7 – Gilbert	Charles Koch Arena (2,100) Wichita, KS
February 3, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tulane	W 75–67	10–4 (6–2)	22 – Etienne	7 – Trey Wade	4 – Gilbert	Charles Koch Arena (2,100) Wichita, KS
February 7, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPNU		Temple	W 70–67	11–4 (7–2)	20 – Etienne	7 – Udeze	5 – Etienne	Charles Koch Arena (2,625) Wichita, KS
February 10, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		at UCF	W 61–60	12–4 (8–2)	17 – Gilbert	10 – Dennis	2 – Tied	Addition Financial Arena (1,385) Orlando, FL
February 18, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2		Memphis	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues^[19]					Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
February 18, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		No. 6 Houston Previously scheduled for Feb. 25	W 68–63	13–4 (9–2)	16 – Tied	6 – Tied	3 – Tied	Charles Koch Arena (2,625) Wichita, KS
February 21, 2021 11:00 a.m., ESPNU		East Carolina	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues^[20]					Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
February 25, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		SMU Previously scheduled for Feb. 28	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues^[21]					Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
February 28, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		at SMU Previously scheduled for Jan. 17	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues^[22]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
March 3, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Tulane	W 78–70	14–4 (10–2)	23 – Wade	13 – Dennis	12 – Gilbert	Devlin Fieldhouse (100) New Orleans, LA
March 6, 2021 5:00 p.m., ESPN2		at Temple	Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues^[23]					Liacouras Center  Philadelphia, PA
March 6, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN+		South Florida Previously scheduled for Jan. 24	W 80–63	15–4 (11–2)	21 – Etienne	8 – Wade	5 – Gilbert	Charles Koch Arena (2,625) Wichita, KS
American Conference tournament
March 12, 2021 11:00 a.m., ESPN2	(1)	vs. (8) South Florida Quarterfinals	W 68–67	16–4	20 – Etienne	11 – Udeze	4 – Porter Jr.	Dickies Arena  Fort Worth, TX
March 13, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN2	(1)	vs. (5) Cincinnati Semifinals	L 59–60	16–5	14 – Gilbert	7 – Udeze	5 – Gilbert	Dickies Arena  Fort Worth, TX
NCAA tournament
March 18, 2021 5:27 p.m., TBS	(11 W)	vs. (11 W) Drake First Four	L 52–53	16–6	22 – Udeze	7 – Tied	4 – Gilbert	Mackey Arena (2,825) West Lafayette, IN
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

Awards and honors

American Athletic Conference honors

All-AAC Awards

• Player of the Year: Tyson Etienne
• Coach of the Year: Isaac Brown

All-AAC First Team

• Tyson Etienne

All-AAC Third Team

• Alterique Gilbert

All-AAC Freshman Team

• Ricky Council IV

Source^[24]

References

1. Marty, Sean (April 13, 2020). "Former Shocker guard Jamarius Burton commits to Texas Tech". thesunflower.com. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
2. Arnold, Chris (April 27, 2020). "Former Shocker Gordon lands at junior college". ksn.com. KSN. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
3. Allen, Percy. "Washington gets commitment from Wichita State transfer and Lacey native Erik Stevenson". seattletimes.com. Seattle Times. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
4. Kurie, Brendan. "Noah Fernandes returns to home state with transfer to UMass". southcoasttoday.com. South Coast Today. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
5. Busse, Tate [@tate11busse] (March 23, 2020). "Excited to say I have committed to Metro State University. Thank you to everyone who has helped and supported me throughout the years" (Tweet). Retrieved April 30, 2020 – via Twitter.
6. Rothstein, Jon [@JonRothstein] (April 11, 2020). "Wichita State transfer Asbjorn Midtgaard tells me he has committed to Grand Canyon" (Tweet). Retrieved April 11, 2020 – via Twitter.
7. Murray, Chris. "Nevada basketball lands Wichita State transfer Grant Sherfield". nevadasportsnet.com. Nevada Sports Net. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
8. Rocca, Taylor (April 20, 2020). "Center Morris Udeze is coming back to play for Wichita State". ksn.com. KSN. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
9. Borges, David. "Alterique Gilbert transferring to Wichita State". Retrieved April 2, 2020.
10. Eldridge, Taylor. "Gregg Marshall's recruiting momentum continues, as WSU lands a top juco combo guard". Retrieved April 2, 2020.
11. Eldridge, Taylor. "Latest Wichita State commitment has been dreaming of 'Playing Angry' for years". Retrieved April 2, 2020.
12. "JUCO Guard Trevin Wade Joins Spring Class". April 17, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
13. Marty, Sean (July 10, 2020). "WSU walk-on Remy Robert II hopes to create an impact at the Division-I level". Retrieved August 20, 2020.
14. "Houston Tabbed as 2020-21 American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Favorite". theAmerican.org. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
15. "Wichita State basketball out of tournament after 'multiple' positive COVID-19 tests". Kansas.com.
16. "The American Announces Changes to Men's Basketball Schedule". February 15, 2021.
17. "The American Announces Changes to Men's Basketball Schedule". February 15, 2021.
18. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". January 26, 2021.
19. "The American Announces Changes to Men's Basketball Schedule". February 13, 2021.
20. "The American Announces Changes to Men's Basketball Schedule". February 16, 2021.
21. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". theamerican.org. February 22, 2021.
22. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". theamerican.org. February 22, 2021.
23. "The American Announces Changes to Final Weekend of Regular Season". theamerican.org. March 2, 2021.
24. "American Athletic Conference Announces Men's Basketball Honors". theamerican.org. March 10, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2021.